Mathieu Beats Shishkin by Split Decision to Retain NABF Title

Wilkens Mathieu preserved his unbeaten record against Vladimir Shishkin, but the split decision at the Theatre Capitole in Quebec City offered considerably more reassurance than the contest itself. The Canadian retained his NABF super middleweight title and collected the vacant WBA Continental North America belt after ten rounds that tested his judgement, stamina and ambitions.

Benoit Roussel and David Therien each scored 98 to 92 for Mathieu. Richard DeCarufel saw a different fight, returning 97 to 93 for Shishkin. Referee Alain Villeneuve supervised a contest whose principal controversy arrived after the final bell. The disagreement was substantial: two officials gave the home fighter eight rounds, while the other awarded his opponent seven.

Mathieu, 21, improves from 16 victories without defeat to 17, with 11 knockouts. Shishkin, 35, entered with 17 wins and two losses and leaves with a third defeat, also retaining 11 knockout victories. Both made the super middleweight limit comfortably, Mathieu weighing 167.6lb and Shishkin 167.7lb.

For the Quebec City native, now based in Montreal, this was another significant examination after his stoppage of Olympic silver medallist Esquiva Falcao in June. Shishkin brought experience of a vacant IBF championship fight against William Scull and an eliminator against Osleys Iglesias. Neither had gone his way, but neither made him an opponent to be dismissed on the strength of his age.

The Russian took the initiative from the opening round, advancing behind his jab and asking Mathieu to work while moving backwards. The younger man had the faster reactions and used them to counter rather than accept every invitation to exchange. It produced an interesting argument between sustained pressure and the sharper individual response.

Shishkin tried to establish range with the double jab. Mathieu did not find everything he wanted either, with some of his heavier punches missing as he looked for the conspicuous connection. His best work came when he allowed the Russian to initiate and answered promptly. The counter right was particularly effective, arriving cleanly enough to draw encouragement from the home crowd.

Mathieu also worked to the body, an important part of his attempt to disrupt an experienced opponent who continued occupying the space in front of him. His movement gave him opportunities to draw attacks and reply, but movement alone could not settle the rounds. He needed the punches accompanying it.

By the middle stages, Mathieu was producing the more striking counters. In the fifth he found Shishkin with right hands, including while operating near the ropes. The official master scorecard shows that all three judges agreed on Mathieu winning the third, fifth and sixth. Beyond those rounds, agreement proved a much scarcer commodity.

Shishkin remained persistent. As Mathieu’s activity diminished later, the Russian found more opportunities to bring his jab into play and press his opponent towards the ropes. He also attacked the body, making the younger man’s task more uncomfortable as the contest progressed.

The change did not produce a dramatic collapse, but it made the closing rounds important. Mathieu increasingly had to manage pressure rather than simply answer it with speed. Shishkin kept coming, refusing to allow the Canadian to turn his earlier successes into an undisturbed journey to the bell. His experience remained an asset as the younger boxer’s early fluency became harder to sustain.

Mathieu responded with cleaner counter work in the final round, although the finish did not erase the argument over what preceded it. His victory can be defended on the quality of his sharper connections. The suggestion that he had disposed of Shishkin comfortably is harder to reconcile with the Russian’s sustained challenge, or with the winner’s own reaction.

Speaking afterwards in French, Mathieu admitted: “It wasn’t my best performance.” He said he had initially approached the contest too much like sparring, allowing Shishkin to touch him while waiting for opportunities to answer. That admission explained something of the difficulty without reducing the opponent’s contribution.

He also acknowledged uncertainty at the final bell, having wondered whether the fight might be a draw. Shishkin’s jab and movement in and out had frustrated him. Mathieu nevertheless maintained his ambition to challenge for a world championship in 2027 and suggested that an opponent detecting weaknesses here might now be more willing to face him. Boxing matchmaking occasionally rewards a less convincing evening.

The bout was the chief support to Iglesias’s defence against Oliver Zaren on the Eye of the Tiger promotion, broadcast internationally by DAZN. Iglesias stopped Zaren in the seventh round to retain his IBF and IBO championships, providing an immediate reminder of the standard awaiting anyone pursuing the division’s leading men.

Mathieu has advanced, and doing so against Shishkin is meaningful. He has also been shown areas requiring attention before his championship ambitions become a championship assignment. Shishkin leaves with another defeat, but his pressure and persistence ensured that the prospect’s education was expensive.

I can accept Mathieu getting the decision, but I can’t accept the comfortable margin suggested by the winning cards. Shishkin made him work, disrupted his rhythm and exposed things that need fixing before anyone starts rushing him towards a world title.

For me, Mathieu’s best weapon was the counter right. When he let Shishkin initiate, judged the distance and answered quickly, he showed proper quality. His speed gave him opportunities to land the cleaner shot while the Russian was coming forward. That’s good boxing, provided you keep producing it. Moving backwards isn’t a problem in itself, but you’ve got to make the bloke following you pay.

Mathieu spent too long looking for a heavy connection instead of putting quicker punches together. That gave Shishkin opportunities to get his jab working and maintain pressure. I liked the veteran’s persistence and body work as Mathieu slowed. He kept asking questions, although his own attacks weren’t always accurate enough to turn pressure into clear control.

What concerns me is how much harder Mathieu found it to maintain his offence later. When your output drops, you leave the judges choosing between your occasional sharp counter and the other man’s sustained work. That’s an uncomfortable position to put yourself in, wherever you’re fighting.

I give Mathieu credit for finding useful counters again at the finish, and for admitting afterwards that he hadn’t boxed at his best. This was a valuable win, but it was also a warning. I’d want a busier jab, less loading up and more consistent work before moving him up to a higher level. Shishkin showed that experience still matters when the younger fighter’s first plan stops working smoothly.